#snjstories

After saving Ace and Ortho from Swing, the students of Night Raven College returned to Christmas Town for a well-deserved rest for the night. Santa Claus had provided beds and guest rooms for the teenagers to use as they prepared to give it their all for the next two weeks of Christmas preparation.

As the third-year students and Jack Skellington tended to the others, Yuu Imamura approached Santa's room with a concerned look.

"Mr. Claus, may I speak with you?" 

"Of course you can, my child. Sit here by the fire. I got some cocoa and cookies as well." Santa sat in his armchair by the fireplace, a scroll full of names in his hand as he beckoned the human closer. Yuu shyly walked towards the fireplace, where a small table held a plate of cookies and mugs of hot chocolate. Thanking the jolly old elf, Yuu politely took a mug and a tiny cookie to nibble on. Once Santa finished the name he left off on, he looked at Yuu in worry. 

"Is there something the matter? Perhaps with helping Christmas? You seem to know all about it than your friends." 

Yuu hugged themselves, lost in a daze of the cocoa with watery brown eyes, before shaking their head with a tearful smile. "Don't worry, Santa. I will do my best to make sure Christmas comes. I just want to clear my conscious of something to bring me peace of mind." 

"Sure, what is it?"

"Say that there's someone who loses his memory and you don't know whether he's on the Naughty or Nice list. He wants a second chance, but it's getting harder to do so each day. And I just found out that there's a chance he could be related to a bad guy, or maybe he is the bad guy. What do I do?" 

Gradually putting two and two together, Santa nodded sagely. "Ah, I see the problem. Well, when you met this fellow, what did you think of him?"

"When I first met him, he was scary, grumpy, and wanted to attack Grim and me. But I saw that he was scared, confused, and alone. I wanted to help him. Even though we had a rough start at first, we all get along and look after each other. He's one of my best friends." Yuu smiled fondly, then gasped. "If I give you his name, could you see if he's on one of your lists?" 

"Hmm, we could always try. What's his name?"

"Felix Cavatica?" 

Santa held up the scroll, which glowed a little before the glow dimmed, and he shook his head, "I'm sorry, but since you all come from a different world, his name does not appear on any of my lists." 

Yuu frowned. "Oh, I'd figure that would happen. Thank you for checking anyway." 

"... Remember Mr. Scrooge and the long night that changed him for the better?" 

"Yeah?"

"And I'd hate to admit this, but even if Jack Skellington is an eccentric fellow, his heart was in the right place, just not his mind or execution. Even though he took over Christmas and got me kidnapped, he did apologize and went back to set things right, along with that wonderful woman who tried to save me. So, I believe as long as they make the effort and attempt to change, anyone deserves another chance in life, regardless of their past."

"Really?" The human smiled with newfound hope and jumped, giving Santa a hug. "Thank you so much, Mr. Claus!" 

Santa laughed, returning the hug. "You're very welcome! And what of you, child? How are you feeling?" 

"A lot of feelings. Excited, sad, scared, and everything in between!" 

"Imamura, you carry the weight of the world all on your shoulders. With the friends that you have, I could see why. But sometimes, you must learn to share the load and make things easier to carry. Now, why don't you go to bed and get some shut-eye? You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow." 

"Okay, Santa."

Grim woke up to a barren and dreary wasteland that almost reminded him of the Hinterlands, except the clouds were a dark grey and only hills could be seen for miles. He spotted Yuu sitting with their head pressed against their knees and their curly brown hair sluggishly covering their shoulders, moaning in frustration. Worried, the cat walked up to the human. 

"What's wrong, henchman?"

"I don't know. My mind's still reeling about Swing and Oogie Boogie, you know?" Yuu lifted their head just enough so that their words would not be muffled. 

"Oh yeah. The scary bad guy problem and the Boogeyman that is based on our dorm being friends with him. Yer scared that Felix might be bad too?" 

"Maybe, but it's more like how would Felix feel about his past and his hero being different. I tried talking to Santa about it, and it helped a little, but I'm still worried." 

Grim shivered, thinking about Swing briefly as he crossed his arms in deep thought. After some time, he figured out something. "Well, we defeated Riddle the tyrant during our first weeks of class together, right?"

"Right...?" Yuu raised an eyebrow, not sure where their friend was going with this. 

"And we defeated Leona during the Spelldrive thingy, right?" 

"Right." 

"Night Raven College is full of weirdoes who seem bad at first, but they have other sides to them, too! Even though Swing can be scary, I think we can take him! So what if our boss becomes a scary, bad guy? We defeated him and those ghosts all by ourselves when we first met, so we could do it again." 

"Huh." Yuu sat up straight, nodding at Grim's logic. "You do have a point."

"And something tells me the Headmage won't let us change our mascot for Ramshackle, so we gotta own up to it. We gotta show Oogie Boogie that we're way better than Swing! Ramshackle, represent! Let's do our boss proud!" Grim grinned, pumping his paw in the air in confidence. Yuu cheered in agreement, standing up from the ground with newfound energy as they followed Grim, who marched forward to explore the strange new place they ended up in.

The two did not notice a figure in the shadows who listened to the whole conversation, flipping a coin in the air before grinning. 

The duo neared a small mountain, approaching the entrance of a tunnel, when Grim spotted a shadowy mass lying on a rock and poked at it with his nose. "What's this thing?" 

"It looks like Swing's jacket, but all dark," Yuu observed, picking up the large jacket. 

"Maybe you should wear it! It'll look cool, and maybe if we think like Swing, it'll help us out." 

At first, Yuu hesitated at Grim's suggestion, yet shrugged. Although there were dangers of being curious, the human did want to wear such a creative jacket, so they decided to tie their hair in a ponytail, put the jacket on, and pull the hood up. Yuu now looked like a shadowy monster with glowing golden eyes. Suddenly, they scooped Grim off the ground and hugged him close to their chest. "Mine!" 

"Let me go, henchman! I'm not a toy!" Grim whined, struggling against the human's grip. Yuu gasped and let go. 

"Whoops! Sorry, Grim. I didn't know what came over me. This thing's powerful. Anyway, let's go!" Yuu rushed off into the tunnel with Grim following behind as best he could, calling for his henchman to slow down. They felt like running off through a forest while laughing at the top of their lungs. It must be the magic of the shadow jacket. They kept running until they emerged from the other side of the tunnel, revealing a large dome-like clearing with levels of trash, junk, and memorabilia from different holidays. Grim caught up to the human and joined them as they both stared at the area in awe. 

"What is this place, Grim?" 

"A junkyard for all the holidays? You think all the missing people are here?" 

"I don't think so. But there might be something we could find about where they are, Swing's weaknesses, or anything about Felix." 

Yuu and Grim spent the next hour or so exploring the junkyard while trying to avoid any steep hills or sharp objects. At one point, Grim climbed into a cardboard box and threw away random objects over his shoulder. 

"Junk, junk, junk... and more junk! What did you find, Yuu?" Grim turned his head to find Yuu holding a plastic pumpkin, a large paper heart, and Christmas lights tangled around their body, along with trinkets sticking out from their jacket.

"I don't think anything important." They admitted with a bashful grin, dropping the items they had acquired and brushing off the Christmas lights. 

"It's a good thing Ace and Deuce aren't here. They'd tease us to no end... I miss the Boss Man." 

"I miss Felix, too. We'll find something soon." As if the universe came to answer, Yuu and Grim felt a large amount of energy enter the area as a spell was cast, making them cry out in shock. 

Appearing in black and purple sparkles was a bountiful feast ten times the size of a human on top of an enormous platform that acted like a table against the edges of the dome. It consisted of chocolate-covered strawberries, a hefty slice of red velvet cake, shepherd's pie, fried potatoes, glazed ham slices, roasted carrots, barbequed ribs, a pile of burgers, several hot dogs, assorted candies, a bowl of snake and spider stew, sliced turkey, macaroni and cheese, cranberry sauce, gingerbread cookies, figgy pudding, and a large mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows. 

"Wow, a delicious feast that'll last for months! We hit the jackpot tonight!" Grim cheered, about to head towards the food, when Yuu raised their arm to block his way. 

"Wait, Grim! That food appeared out of thin air, and the sparkles seem familiar. It's a trap." They concluded, then wondered to themselves why the trap was an extra-large size.

Thoom. Thoom. Thoom. Thoom.

The answer came in tremors from the ground that Yuu recognized as footsteps, causing them to glance in the direction of the sound with Grim.

Towering more than a hundred feet tall was Swing, with a confident grin on his face, his eyes glowing eerily as he stomped towards the feast. Instead of the usual green, his hooded jacket was stitched in rags with browns and different patches representing the holiday doors. A simple crown adorned his head proudly. 

The two Ramshackle students stared at the approaching giant before Grim turned to Yuu with a disappointed glare, crossing his arms. 

Yuu blinked, semi-innocent. "What? Why are you giving me that look, Grim?" 

"Why do I get a feeling that this is a dream come true for you?" 

Yuu laughed sheepishly with a slight blush before sighing in defeat. "More like a nightmare before Christmas." 

"Henchman, you are a predictable weirdo." The monster cat groaned, then grinned as he quietly scampered off to an area away from the feast. "But you're my predictable weirdo. Now, let's go find some clues before Swing notices us!" 

Yuu's face fell in awe before they smiled and nodded, following Grim. They were so surprised and proud of Grim for being serious and mature when it mattered most. As the two silently searched through items, the giant fae stopped right in front of the feast, cheering with booming laughter.

"Finally, I can relax in my realm surrounded by my collection! Oh, I'm feeling weak... with hunger! All that playing around has gotten me starving. Mr. Swing's lucky to grab all this food from the towns he paid a visit to~!" 

Swing plopped down in the free space of the dome, the collection surrounding him trembling as he lounged back like sitting on a throne. He then took out his coin.

Yuu stayed as far away from Swing as possible, hidden yet close enough to keep an eye out for him. They could not help but stare as the giant coin weaved in between large fingers so effortlessly before being flipped high into the air and caught with ease. They wondered what Swing decided to do with that coin flip... only to regret it when Swing sighed dramatically.

"Ah, what a glorious feast fit for a holiday king like myself. Best of all, I got this limited-Holiday edition, savory, fancy tuna with the Everything Seasoning. If only the Great and Magnificent Grim would come and join in on this feast with me~!" Seemingly out of nowhere, Swing pulled out a glowing bowl of said tuna the size of a car while sporting a devilish, knowing grin. Yuu's eyes widened in realized horror. 

Immediately, Grim popped out from a box, exclaiming happily before rushing towards Swing, "The Great and Magnificent Grim is here!" 

"Grim, NO!" The human tried to grab Grim, but the cat slipped out of reach.

"Grim, yes~" Swing cooed, scooping up a drooling Grim into one of his palms while the cat begged to eat some of the food. 

"Don't ever change, Grim." Yuu groaned softly, ducking low as they snuck off as quickly as possible. Perhaps the fairy did not notice them?

"My Little Shadow, you've returned to Mr. Swing!" 

Yuu immediately screamed and made a run for it, trying not to stumble over the debris around them.

"Ah, ah, ah, not so fast~!" With ease, Swing used three fingers to pluck the human up from the ground, lifting them to eye level and causing their hood to drop from their head. Yuu dangled in front of his face, literally the size of his thumb, as they groaned in defeat. 

"Hi, Swing." 

"Hi, Yuu. Whatcha doin'? Mr. Swing sees you've got your gift." 

"Your gift?" They smiled nervously, knowing full well that they were in crushing or eating range. The hairs on the back of their neck stood on end as they replied while clearing their throat. "It's lovely! We were just exploring. Yeah, exploring! We were totally not finding ways to defeat you because that would be bad! Right, Grim?" 

Getting the hint, Grim briefly focused on the situation as he nodded and crossed his arms in a united front. "Oh yeah, that's right! We're wandering around, and we don't know where anybody else is, including Jack Skellington!" 

Swing raised an eyebrow in disbelief, narrowing his eyes at the Ramshackle students. He deposited the human next to Grim, then smirked as he raised his free hand and gathered magical energy into it.

"Since you won't tell me where Skellington is, I might as well have my fun with you!" 

Grim and Yuu hugged each other for dear life, thinking that whatever chaotic magic Swing had planned would either kill them or change them permanently.

"Welp, it's been nice knowing me, henchman!" 

"You as well, Grim! Wait, what's that supposed to mean?!" They did a double-take, then screamed along with Grim as the two closed their eyes, bracing themselves as the fingers snapped... but nothing happened.

"Y'all ain't dead yet." Swing deadpanned. Upon hearing that, Yuu and Grim opened their eyes, their screams dying down. 

Instead of the Christmas costume with the hat and beard, Grim was now wearing a green and black ribbon with a scary face on it. 

Under the shadow jacket, Yuu now wore a stitched purple shirt and black pants. 

"Huh, we're alive?!" 

"Bwahahahaha, look at those cute, funny faces! Priceless!" Swing roared with laughter, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "All I did was give you both some flair since you're in the presence of a king... Y'know, whoever this Felix is, he's lucky to have henchmen like you two." 

Yuu hummed quizzically at Swing's vague, thoughtful tone, but got interrupted with Grim pointing at the giant angrily. "Hey, how come you're nice to us all of a sudden?" 

Swing shrugged. "You two barely have any strong magic, so I have to be fair. The coin told me so." 

Or you have something else in mind, Yuu thought. 

"Besides, I want the one with little magic to experience what it's like being me, right? Ain't it thrilling?" 

"A little." The human admitted. 

"That's the spirit! For playing with me and still standin' to tell the tale, you shall join me. And before ya ask, Yuu, this food ain't fae made, so ya don't have to worry about curses or stealing you guys away yet. Here you go!" Swing unceremoniously dropped Grim into the tuna bowl. 

The human leaned forward to call out, "Grim, do not eat the food! Mr. Swing's trying to keep us! Do something!" 

"I was wrong about you, Swing! You're the best!" Grim smiled before sticking his head into the fish and chowing down. 

Yuu gave Grim an eye-twitching look that clearly read, 'If we survive this, I will strangle you.'

"Oooh, that's the same face Oogie gets right before he scolds me! Looks silly on you~! I like you, kid. You got moxie and style! Ya seem to like this sorta setup, so you deserve the best seat in the house. I'll put you riiiiiiiight here!" Swing placed Yuu between his neck and the centipede tattoo, loosening a little before wrapping around Yuu, keeping them in place as the giant chuckled. "Nice and snug for Mr. Swing." 

Yuu shuddered, feeling the legs vibrate against their body, then they became still. "Gee, thanks?"

"Welcome. Next is your treat." Swing hovered his hand over the center of the feast. Yuu could not help but stare at the food hungrily, their eyes lingering on the chocolate-covered strawberries for a few seconds. Without a glance, the giant fairy picked one out and offered it to Yuu. 

"How did you know I wanted one?" 

Swing chuckled, placing a treasure chest-sized strawberry in Yuu's hands. "King of Desire, remember? I can sense anyone's greed or desire very well. Good henchmen get what they want." 

They did not understand why, but Yuu felt compelled to take large, squelching bites out of their treat, consuming as much sweetness as possible while Swing watched as if feeding off the new greed. After a while, he glanced down at Yuu.

"Satisfied?" 

"Yes?" 

"Good. The rest are mine~!" He cracked his knuckles, pulled out a heavy pitchfork using sleight of hand, and dug into the potatoes first like a starved animal. 

Yuu dropped the half-eaten strawberry in shock at the speed Swing devoured. Although he savored each bite with a moan, he slurped large gulps of potatoes, carrots, and cheesy pasta as if the very food he conjured would disappear in minutes. Yuu could not see the face or mouth, but they had full access to the slowly expanding abdomen below them, with soft gurgles and groans accentuating every morsel that dropped into the stomach. 

Each swallow pushed and dragged against Yuu's back, massaging it as they shuddered. While turkey and ham were consumed next, Yuu resorted to their thoughts.

Now I know where Felix gets his large appetite from. Remember, Yuu: he's old, powerful, and your friend's possible family. Do not engage. Survive until rescue is possible. Stay strong!

"HHHHUUUUUUUUOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRP!" An earth-shaking belch spewed out from Swing's lips after guzzling down the bowl of Snake and Spider Stew in one long gulp.

Grim took a break from eating, whistling at the sound. "Whoa, nice one! Not as good as mine, though."

"Is that a bet, Pint-Size?" Swing smiled at the challenge, then proceeded to release more belches along with Grim in an impromptu contest, the junkyard shaking at each noise bursting out.

Yuu buried their red face into their hands, several curses swimming in their mind as they attempted to keep their composure with a straight face. They had willpower as strong as a paper towel. Adding the facts that there was no water in the area to move and no other living person to help, Yuu had the nerve-wracking task of dealing with their eccentric cat and a powerful criminal who could end them at any time, but chose not to based entirely on luck. 

The feast went on seemingly for hours with gluttonous abandon. The hot dogs, candies, and strawberries were swallowed whole. For the rest of the food, the giant threw away the fork and used his hands. Dishes licked clean were stacked in a semi-neat pile. By the time Swing finished it off with the mug of hot chocolate, his belly grew to the size of a watermelon from his perspective, but to the human and cat, it was the size of a mansion that stretched out his shirt. 

"OOOOOOOUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRP! Damn, that hit the spot~ You like that, huh, Little Shadow?" 

What Yuu wanted to say was how Swing was a gross and smug jerk. What came out was a thumbs up and a "No comment." They then squealed as they slid out of the tattoo's grip, down the chest, and landed on top of the distended gut, sinking onto it like a sloshing beanbag. 

Swing scooped up the half-eaten bowl of tuna where Grim lay on the rim, extremely full. He fell off the ledge, but Yuu caught him just in time. 

"Whoops," Swing picked up the two with a free hand, amused after a yawn. "There you go, making funny faces again and acting so greedy! I'm so proud of you! I think that's enough fun and torture for one night. Mr. Swing'll get you to talk once we all wake up in the mornin'." He slurped up the remaining tuna, made the dishes and platform disappear, stretched out his stuffed body, and leaned forward into the junk pile, drifting off to sleep with Yuu and Grim nestled in his arms. It seemed like the two would be stuck as prisoners for a long--

"Psst!" Yuu glanced down to see Silver hiding behind one of the nearby pumpkins and Lilia behind a present box. 

"We're getting both of you out of here," Lilia promised in a whisper. Yuu and Grim smiled in quiet relief. 

"Thank goodness!"

"What kept you? I had to handle Swing all by myself with Henchman's help!" 

"Well, we're here now, and that's what matters at the moment. Hold still and quiet!" Lilia and Silver came out from their hiding spaces once they sensed that the giant fairy was in a deep sleep. They carefully walked to the arms with Lilia levitating to the duo, lifting them from Swing's loose grip. Once the three were on solid ground, they joined Silver in tiptoeing out of the junkyard. 

During the stealth mission, Yuu observed Swing's body when something strange caught their eye. They watched as the centipede tattoo on the neck extended towards Swing's earlobe, almost whispering into the ear. Grim gasped at the sight, then whispered harshly, "Snitches get stitches, ya crawlie-worm!" 

The tattoo seemed to bristle at the name. 

"Um, Grim? I don't think you should have done that." Silver warned. Before Grim could ask why, a pair of giant green eyes with insect pupils suddenly opened up, glaring at the four students.

Yuu stammered with a nervous smile, "Sh-Shall we run for our lives?" 

"Let's~!" With a grin, Lilia ran while carrying Yuu, and Silver followed behind with Grim in his arms. They kept on running even with shadows looming over them and a frustrated roar shaking the air. Before a hand could reach to grab them...

Yuu woke with a startled gasp in their cozy bed, glancing around at the warm atmosphere around them and the snows of Christmas Town outside the nearby window. Grim was resting by their feet, semi-awake. After settling down, they sighed in both relief and disappointment.

"Aww, man, it was a dream!" 

"Aww, man, it was a dream!" Swing groaned in frustration after waking up against the Christmas Tree door in the Hinterlands. He was so close to getting what he desired sooner, but the fae and his son had to show up at the end. The fairy scowled and stood up, crossing his arms. He did not know why his luck chose his current path, nor of the strange feelings he had towards the Ramshackle duo. He closed his eyes as he remembered their first official meeting some time ago. 

"Yo! Did I interrupt anything?" Swing had called out to the group at the center of Halloween Town with his hood up. "Oops, my bad, my bad. I heard such happy voices, I just couldn't help myself. I wanna play too! Mind letting me join the gang?" 

Instead of confusion, fear, or apprehension that the others had, Yuu smiled and stepped forward, extending an open hand to a powerful and magical fae they knew nothing about with a friendly and accepting air.

"Hey there! Not at all. We were just saying hi. Nice to meet you, stranger!"   Swing opened his eyes that glowed fiercely in memory of the recent dream, thinking about how loyal and dedicated Yuu and Grim were, deciding right then and there, on another object or two that he desired. 

Felix trudged into Ramshackle sluggishly; the hours spent in the Other World felt more like months. Stress piling up on memories and emotions made the young man want to crawl under the bed or hide in the closet for three days straight. Who cared about school after dealing with Magicam Monsters, parties, and ghosts? He waved at Yuu and Grim, bidding them a good night as they slowly made their way up to the bedroom that they shared. Felix collapsed onto the sofa with a loud groan. 

"I think I've had enough parties to last me a lifetime! At least I can go out tired but happy."

"Enjoyed the party, old friend?" A light, masculine voice piped up from Felix's side, then gloved hands grabbed Felix's hand before lifting it against cracked lips that kissed the back of his hand. 

"GAH!" Felix jumped to the top of the sofa, staring at the specter before him while rubbing both sides of his hand rapidly. "Where did you come from?!"

The figure chuckled impishly as he stood at the front of the sofa, pushing his round sunglasses towards the bridge of his nose. He resembled a tall, pale teenage boy in a fancy black-and-white suit stitched with threads, short white hair with black streaks, and reddish-orange eyes behind glasses that reminded Felix of pumpkins. 

This was Skully Jackson Graves. With a name like that and the turmoil he had to go through for a few weeks, Felix wished he were among his peers who had forgotten about Skully after leaving that wretched yet wonderful book. It was a woven tale of fiendish glee, debates, an almost-kidnapping, and meetings of idols all wrapped up in a Halloween party he would remember for a long time. Felix did not know why he still remembered every detail. It could have been his memory curse or how he was connected to the denizens of Halloween Town. Still, whatever the case, he remembered to the point where the very being he had been suspicious of turned out to be the Halloween King of Twisted Wonderland and a Night Raven College graduate. 

"First of all, we are not friends," Felix insisted, dusting himself off once he got off the couch. "And second, what are you still doing here? Aren't you going to go where spirits go to, or do you have other things you could be doing, Halloween King?"

"Whatever you say, Cavatica. I'm still here for many reasons, one of them being that technically it was still Halloween. That Draconia is very powerful to stop time like that. I would've done the same thing if I could!" Skully explained with a smile as he floated in mid-air, swooning at the thought of holding such power, before he continued, "I like broadening my horizons, and your idea of Halloween is a sight to see. I've already seen the Other World, and I prefer Halloween Town. Besides, if I think I know you, you'd want a party without me for a change."

Felix nodded, then trudged into the kitchen, trying to ignore the eccentric ghost floating behind him as he opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of fruit punch. "Damn straight, I do! You caused enough trouble for us when we got stuck in Halloween Town, stealing my thunder and my dormmates like that. I wish I could forget, but my memories are already messed up to begin with!" 

"Ah, that explains it. Because of your curse and your body in a confused, half-Overblot state, you remember me and our time in Halloween Town. It's because you are partially dead. Makes sense since I did not remember our time until I passed on." 

"What do you want, Graves?" 

"Straight to the point, I see. That's one of the things I like about you, Felix." Skully grinned, descending so that his feet touched the ground before he put on his best smile and put his hand out to shake. "I want to help you. I want in on your road to redemption!" 

Felix almost choked, but forced himself not to spit out the beverage. Swallowing, he pushed Skully's hand away nonchalantly before turning to walk to a guest room. "Pass." 

"Hear me out first!" Skully flew right into Felix's face, stopping him in his tracks. "Before you went to the Other World with your friends, I overheard what happened here in this room. I could not help but pry. Dear Yuu got very concerned about you and told everyone about your current situation. They pleaded for help regarding your curse and memories."

Felix's eyes twitched. "You think I want one of the many great-grandfathers of one of my supposed enemies as a guide?"

"Do you have anyone else in mind? The headmage is a strange entity; the teachers and most of the student body are affected by the curse, and the ones who can break the curse don't know you very much. With me being a ghost, my preferred form being a freshman, and I wasn't there at the time of the incident, it can work! Don't you think that this is a sign? Why are you the only one who could see or remember me?"

"I thought it was destiny or fate that got me here, but maybe there's a good reason I got cursed in the first place. Maybe I don't deserve redemption." 

"Jack seemed to think so. He overheard Yuu and Grim talking about you. When you came with Leona, Jamil, and Sebek to save Jack, Yuu, and Grim from me, Jack saw how you cared about your dormmates' safety. He admired that about you." 

For a moment, Felix scoffed and became quiet, his green eyes glistening as he hugged himself. Wanting to cheer him up, Skully wrapped an arm around Felix's shoulders. 

"Besides, it makes for such a good story: Night Raven's Boogeyman getting a second chance at life! Now that is something I want to be a part of, if not for a small part! Heeheeheeeha!"

He usually did not pray, but Felix clasped his hands together as he closed his eyes, trying not to explode in frustration as he murmured, "Great-Grandfather, I don't know what I did beforehand, but why me?!" 

"Stubborn as your grandfather and just as cunning! Another admirable feature!" As Felix pushed him off and wandered inside Ramshackle, Skully strolled by his side and continued. "I propose that I can help out here and there. I will stay for at least a year at Ramshackle as an alumnus to mentor both you and, well, Yuu. And perhaps Mr. Grim, but that's just stretching it. I'm already haunting the school anyway. Besides, I have a strange feeling that whatever is happening to you is connected to my descendants. Think of it as unfinished business for the Graves family."

"I don't know... for all I know, you may very well be the catalyst for my fatal demise."

"Well, whether you die soon or not, we will end up seeing each other again. Win-win, right? But it doesn't hurt to try something new. You and my dearest friends taught me that!"

Felix stopped walking when he reached the ruins of the basement by chance. The ghosts had cleaned up most of the debris so it would not be a complete safety hazard, but it was still a disarray of ruins. He remembered running. He remembered the icy glares of betrayal. He remembered the screams of many that spewed from his lips. He remembered the eternal slumber that lasted for almost a year. He remembered Yuu and Grim waking him up. Their smiles. Their antics. Their belief that perhaps he deserves that second chance. 

At the center of the room, Felix saw the shadows where two figures were waiting for him. One was his Phantom, incomplete and completely in shadow. It stayed dormant, but present, forever looming towards him like it was inevitable. The other figure was his great-grandfather. He did not remember the other's name, but Felix recognized him from pictures in his mind: the grey corpse-like skin, pointed ears and scars, the green jacket with stitches, long black hair tied in a ponytail, a shaved goatee, green button eyes, and a centipede tattoo wrapped around his neck. One glance from a confused Skully, and Felix knew he was hallucinating things. 

When the grandfather stared at Felix and Skully, Felix heard deep laughter coming from the man, along with the high-pitched laughter coming from the centipede. 

"You're jokin' me! Graves wanting to follow ya like a ghost puppy? BWHAHAHAHA! I'm splittin' a seam! Sucks to be you, pal~" 

Felix pinched the bridge of his nose, wishing he could fully overblot right then and there. With a sigh, he murmured. "Gimme a moment to think. It ain't my fault... what should I do?" 

"Well, well, well, now, I ain't the one who got himself cursed." The man mused after wheezing from his laughter, beckoning his descendant over with a nod as he sat on a box while flipping a coin in his hand. "Wish I could help instead, but something tells me I'd only be useful to ya once ya got your curse and memories settled. I hate to say it, but Graves is right in that it's a Win-Win. You can give him something to do, and you could either end up alive or dead. Such is life! What do ya got to lose? Things are much more fun with lives on the line. Maybe for once, let's see where yours could lead!" He then caught the coin and showed its sinister face before adding, 

"Show me and Mister Oogie Boogie how you can kick things up a notch~" 

Matching his smirk to his grandfather's, Felix turned to Skully and stretched out his hand with a devious grin. "It's a deal, Skully Graves. You can help us here at Ramshackle, the dormitory founded under the Creativity of The Boogeyman. We can make it official later, but I, Felix Cavatica, Vice Housewarden of Ramshackle, accept your offer." 

"Oh my! Thank you so much, my friend! You shall not regret this!" Skully grinned and shook Felix's hand, then almost raised it to his lips again, but Felix pulled his hand away smoothly and strutted to the center of the room, where he dropped into a pile of old clothes, raggedy blankets, and sacks, lying upon them like he was in an open casket. He closed his eyes, about to drift off to sleep, when he felt a presence floating above his body, making him glare. 

"Go back to sleep, Graves!"

"I don't need sleep, Cavatica~!"

What did he do?

What did he do?!

The little pink dog scrambled out of the dumpster he was dropped into, his mind and heart racing as he tried to calm down. He found himself in a city alleyway surrounded by brick walls and trash cans. As he stood up in worry, he suddenly froze as he heard a countdown  blaring in his mind and the sound of something big opening nearby. He turned his head to the direction of the sound, only to gasp as the roof of a building opened up and a rocket started blasting off into the sky. 

Now the puppy remembered. 

He was at the Vet's office with his parents after getting his head stuck in a metal fence while playing catch. Everything was normal at first; the veterinarian got his head unstuck and gave him a lollipop, then went to talk to his parents. The puppy, although scared, assumed that the man was going to ask questions about him and give advice before he and his family left for home. That seemed like a normal thing to do when talking to a doctor. 

Until he heard his parents scream. 

The world came to a complete stop when the little dog turned and stared as his parents dangled inside a large net with the vet carrying them behind his back to another room. What was happening? This was supposed to be a veterinarian. A doctor. Someone you trust with your health. How could a person like that kidnap his parents?

He had no time to think. He ran after the human, determined to save his parents no matter what. He went through several doors until he snuck into an office where the veterinarian was taking his family to an actual giant rocket on the other side of a window. The puppy remembered watching rockets on television screens. He had seen scary films about aliens and news reports about people flying to the moon. This man was sending his parents to outer space? Not if the puppy could do anything about it. 

He saw the man throw the two dogs into the rocket, shut the door, then walked back to a control panel when the countdown began. 60. 59. 58...

Quickly, the pink canine rushed towards the rocket and jumped towards the door where he could see his parents through a little window, scared as they were calling for help and looking for a way out. He saw their big worried eyes making contact with his and his heart broke. He tried opening the door. He really did. But there was nor knob or key. 

"Hey, what are you doing there?!" The veterinarian boomed as he entered the room and loomed over the pup. The puppy screamed in terror and ran away in circles, trying desperately to avoid the large intimidating from catching him and throwing him into the rocket as well or something worse. He noticed red arrows pointing to a metal drawer, so he ran and clambered into it, sliding down a chute just as ten gangling fingers almost grabbed him by the waist. 

5. 4. 3. 2. 1.

That was how the pink puppy found himself surrounded by trash as he waved goodbye to his family from beyond the clouds with tears welling up in his eyelids until they trickled out to the rough pavement. 

This wasn't a bad dream he could wake up from. This was a living nightmare. 

This was his punishment for getting into trouble. For not being brave enough. For choosing to survive rather than help his parents or join them so they could still be a family. For not knowing what to do at a time like this. Before, his parents always forgiven him whenever he had made a mistake or got too scared. They would kiss him if he hurt himself and give him big hugs. They would encourage him to do tasks by himself, congratulating him when he did them and reassuring him when he didn't. His father would scratch him behind his ears. His mother would curl up around him with her body when he had a nightmare. His parents always knew what to do. And now they were gone.

The pink dog didn't know how long he was in the alleyway. Minutes? Hours? Days? 

He wanted someone to scoop him up in their arms, hold him close, and tell him that everything was going to be okay. But who could he trust? Anyone could be a monster willing to hurt him. To turn on him and do who knew what. He sat huddled by trash cans as he trembled, squirming around and hugging himself to quell his craving for contact. No family. No home. Cold. Hungry. Guilty.

The puppy wailed at the top of his lungs, almost hoping that his sobs would be loud enough to travel to outer space so that his parents would hear him. For anyone to hear him. 

And someone did. 

"Oh my! What are you doing out here all alone?" A mature feminine voice called out, dripping with concern and an accent. The young dog glanced to see a large woman walking towards him. She had long brown hair and circular glasses on as well as dark boots and a large dark green coat that reached her ankles. He whimpered, trembling as the woman got closer to him. A part of him didn't want to stay. For all he knew, the human would lead him to a secret lair or something. He couldn't trust strangers. And yet, a part of him sensed that the woman was not evil or scary. A part of him wanted comfort no matter the danger. So when the woman loomed over him, he simply stared at her and raised his paws to be scooped up.

Warm plush hands soft as wool held his sides and lifted him into the air. If he weren't so weak and wary, he would have snuggled into her arms or lean closer to her touch. But he couldn't. Any moment now, she would see how pathetic he was and drop him. He stared at her and waited with trembling wide eyes and dried tears.

Instead of a scowl, a tight grip to make his bones pop, or his face smacked against a brick wall, he was met with a soft grin as the woman gasped, "What courage you have!"

Courage? This woman must be mistaken. There was nothing courageous about him. Period. He ran away when his family needed him most. He cried and ran away from anything nearly everyday of his life. 'Coward' was the more appropriate word to describe him. 

And yet, she seemed like an honest woman. Her face looked round and gentle like the fluffiest pillow in the world. Her hair seemed like a mix of chocolate and cotton candy you'd find at a county fair. She smelled of home cooking and blankets sewn by hand with care. Most of all, the eyes that hid behind the protection of her glasses glimmered in truth and positivity. He didn't consider himself a special creature, but at that moment, he knew that his keen senses were telling him to trust her. 

"My name is Muriel." The woman introduced herself, "Would you like to come home with me?"

It was because of her touch and gaze that made the puppy smile as he hugged the closest arm to him. Muriel's smile grew as her arms wrapped around his waist in a firm embrace. 

"I'll call you 'Courage'. We'll have a grand time!" She promised him before heading off to take him home in a green pick-up truck across the street.

Courage let himself get lost at the touch of Muriel's arms, sinking into the warmth even when she got into the truck and gently placed him to her side. He never stopped touching her lap for anything. Although no one could replace his family, this woman was a welcoming close second. He thought about the days he'd spend with his new owner. Perhaps she'll feed him good meals and they do chores or crafts together. Maybe they'll spend their quiet days rocking back and forth with him curled up on her lap. They would grow old together and he'll help her around the house. He'll protect her. If there were monsters out there in the world, he was determined to protect one of the good humans in the world even if it meant his life. But he didn't think too much of it for now.

Chapter 1: The Curse Begins

In life, people say that only death is certain. For the afterlife? Eternity, any suffering of some kind, and the places the dead end up. Depending on the soul and the circumstances of someone's death, a person could be sent to a variety of realms. There were different versions of Heaven, Hell, Limbo, and in some cases, a holiday world. This tale in particular resides in the living realm, Hell, and the Netherworld.

There were two major details that the living didn't know about the afterlife. The first one was that the Netherworld was like a creepy airport for the recently deceased, only that it was really a dark abyss that led to who knows where with no way of telling where anyone would end up.

The second thing? Demons are really huge compared to humans, dead or alive. In the living realm, they blended with humans physically to make situations easier. But in Hell? A demon's true height could range between seven feet to hundreds of feet tall. And Hell wasn't just a cavern of fire and brimstone either. It was the dark, grimy underworld of a city where slum lords lurked in the alleys and the air was polluted with a fiery, red haze. It was nine circles of everlasting torture ruled by cardinal sins and vices. And for a certain demon who spent most of her afterlife in the Netherworld, it was an empty and bleak waiting room in a large office building with the walls decaying and the air smelling of burnt socks.

Juno Shoggoth scowled as her heels clacked against the tiles of the hallway, walking to the waiting room while trying not to hunch over as usual. Once she had signed in with the receptionist, she took her seat and briefly pulled the cigarette out from her lips, letting the smoke ooze out from the slit on her neck.

"Why did he have to call a meeting now of all times?" Juno hissed, crossing her legs. "Doesn't he know my work schedule in general?"

As director of Netherworld Customs and Processing, it was her job to make sure that the transition from life to the afterlife went smoothly for the dead. Sure, the work was tedious and the woman would rather smoke for eternity than deal with tiny annoyances, but she was assigned to the position not by choice. She literally and figuratively grew from a civil servant spirit to a powerful demon overnight; one of her proudest achievements she had to admit.

Her biggest mistake was Lawrence.

Lawrence Betelgeuse Shoggoth. Just thinking about his name made her blow another smoke ring and want a shot of alcohol. Like most other demons who were born dead rather than turned into one, Betelgeuse appeared after Juno had affairs with a demon and the demon left. She didn't like children to begin with, let alone raising something that acted like one. Regardless, she didn't have a choice either when a dead-born was involved. Dead-borns were powerful shifters with abilities no one dared imagine and capable of changing their size more smoothly than regular demons, hence the curses placed on them and the mandatory supervision. If every realm in existence turned upside down and the blame traced back to Juno, she would never hear the end of it.

"Lucifer is ready for you now, Miss Juno!" The receptionist's shrill, but deep shriek interrupted her train of thought.

"It's about damn time." Juno muttered under her breath as she threw her cigarette away and stood up. A red line of energy was drawn in front of the demon out of nowhere before splitting in two and opening as a doorway to Lucifer's office. She walked through the portal, the line disappearing as soon as she entered the room. Although she got used to the afterlife, Juno would admit that she didn't know whether it was a relief or unnerving that the room was a typical office one would expect a boss to reside in with a chair and desk, save for the hazy landscape of hell on the other side of the window in front of her. At this point, she didn't even bother wondering.

"Have a seat, Juno." A deep, gruff voice commanded from a leather swivel chair in a calm tone, causing a slight echo in the room. Juno sat on the wooden chair without fanfare, glaring at the window.

The ruler of Hell was arguably the most massive demon ever known, probably rivaled by Leviathan if they got into a mood. Big horns? Monstrous? Usually dwelled at the very bottom of Hell? Most of the rumors were true along with the fact that everybody knew not to mess with him unless they had a wish worse than death. Despite such knowledge, Lucifer appeared from the swivel chair on the other side of the desk, much smaller than normal and dressed for business. A simple black suit and dark red tie with golden cuff links. Dark grey medium length hair with large twisted horns of ivory adorned on top of it. Yellow eyes with pupils akin to a goat's narrowed as he fixed his collar and cleared his throat.

"I have a feeling you know the reason why I called you here." Lucifer stated, raising an eyebrow. Juno returned the action.

"You usually don't call me unless A) you’re redesigning the Netherworld in some way or B) Beetlejuice is involved. Something tells me it's the latter."

"Come on, Juno. Don't sound like I keep calling you because of that! You're a good worker. No nonsense. Telling it like it is while sorting out the souls. You're one of the few demons I could tolerate." When Juno didn't respond, the ruler of Hell continued.

"I just wanted to discuss what our plans are for Lawrence in the future, that's all." Lucifer shrugged. "Just to prevent repeated offenses from happening. Despite his... flaws, your son still has potential. Deceit. Torture. Power that some dead-borns don't have. I wanted him to become an official exorcist demon, but you insisted on having him as a Netherworld guide instead, even though he hasn't done it properly in centuries!" He brought a fist down onto the desk, the whole room seeming to tremble at the action.

"With all due respect, sir, we cannot give any more power and ego than the fool believes he has." Juno hissed as she pinched the bridge of her nose briefly. "If we do, both the Netherworld and Hell would be in shambles. And I believe you just want him to annoy one of your own headaches."

At that, both demons glared at each other and crossed their arms as they leaned forward. They stared at each other down for a while until Lucifer pulled back up with a sigh.

"... You're smarter than I thought." Ignoring the woman's tiny smirk of victory, Lucifer turned his back to her as he stared at the hazy city before him.

"You're not wrong. You got Lawrence and the Recently Deceased, I got the souls of the damned and the other cardinal leaders bothering me. Beelzebub especially. Always gloating that he's more powerful and mainstream than the rest. I figured that if he's with someone just as annoying as him, he'll settle down and we both get them out of our businesses for at least a decade or two. Maybe a century if we're lucky."

Juno scoffed. "That's going to be a problem since I banished mine to the world of the living."

"And how's that going for you?" Lucifer glanced back at the director, almost knowingly. "Knowing him, he'll find a way back to the dead. He always does."

“I can assure you that Lawrence is stuck at the surface with the living and suffering for it.”

Meanwhile in one of the several downtown areas of Hell, something was going down on one of the top floors of a ten-floor apartment.

In front of the building was a black Mercedes Benz with a fly painted on the hood, idle as the driver waited for someone. Inside the car, black sharp nails drummed against the wheel at a scattered and quick pace while the owner of said nails exhaled a buzzing breath.

“Why is he taking so long? There won't be much time left!” The driver growled in a high baritone voice that sounded as if it were melting like butter. His unruly, spiky orange hair seemed to hover over his pointed ears as his bright orange eyes narrowed at nothing specific on the street. He was tall, had dark tan skin, and a bit chubby around the edges with a pot belly held back by a sleeveless maroon shirt and ripped black jeans. The large fly wings on his back hummed against the seat, almost impatient. It was supposed to be a quick stop of supplies and nothing else. What was going on in there?

Just then, there were some muffled shouts until someone burst out through the front door lugging an overfilled burlap sack over their shoulder. The demon was a bit more than five and a half feet tall with golden eyes, pale skin, and wild green hair along with some yellow strands popping out. They wore a dusty dark grey coat over their black and white striped suit and green tie.

They then exclaimed in a masculine, gravelly voice as they scrambled into the front passenger seat, "Step on it, Bee!"

"It's about time!" The orange-haired demon groaned in relief as he slammed the accelerator and the car sped off, causing the other to almost fly out to the backseat, but he held on.

“What took you so long, Beetlejuice?! I’ve been waiting here for decades! Did ya get everything?” Bee inquired with a smile.

Beetlejuice chuckled and nudged an elbow to Bee, “It hasn’t been that long and you know it, Beelzebub. I should know; I’ve been waiting for centuries. And it isn’t my fault this time! A couple o' demons were late, some of the items were wrong, and I kinda-sorta pissed some of the demons off with a femur. Don't ask."

“Damn… my bad. We wouldn’t have taken this detour if dear old Satan and the rest of my ‘family’ didn’t seal some of my powers away! You take over a few séances and possess a large group of people for three weeks and suddenly, you’re the bad guy!” Bee snarled and shook his head before making a sharp left turn at an alley once he saw some shadows at his rear-view mirror.

“I know, right?” Beetlejuice scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Sounds just like my mom. ‘Beebleboose, stop bothering the recently deceased and get a job!’”

Beelzebub laughed as he elbowed the dead-born demon, the yellow colors fading back to green. “See? We get each other, BJ! The only other demon who gets me would be my twin, but he’s more about locking his stash away and never using it. Not us. We gluttons know how to have a good time! Why don’t you move down here for the rest of eternity? We could be neighbors, roommates even!”

"As much as eternal suffering sounds awesome, it kinda loses its touch after a while, ya know?" Beetlejuice leaned back in his seat. "Doesn't it get boring torturing and killing souls over and over and they always come back? It's gettin' to a point where everyone expects it. I just wanna get out and have my kind of fun for a change! I wanna be with the living! I don’t want anyone or anything tying me down ever again."

"I hear ya, Ant-Wine. There's just something about the living that's so damn addicting. And I ain't just talking about tastes either! Why do you think I keep risking my existence for the biggest gluttons out there? And what's your job on the surface again? It sounds hilarious!"

"A bio-exorcist. Y'know how the living try to take out demons? I, a demon, take out the living for the dead." Beetlejuice jerked a thumb to his own chest with pride, then shrugged after thinking about it. “Granted, I can’t affect the living and I’m getting ghosts to make the living say my name, but it’s a good gig.”

“Well, ya don’t need to worry about that anymore once we get to the spot!” Bee assured him as he checked to see if anything else were following them, then sighing when they were in the clear. “I got some of my followers on the surface getting themselves into position. When we get there, I possess the leader, say your name three times, and we both get summoned into the land of the living. We scare and eat as much as we want, grow as we please, and we split the world and possibly the universe fifty-fifty!”

“Eighty-twenty.” Beetlejuice challenged.

“Seventy-thirty.”

“Sixty-forty, plus I get a Broadway musical and say-so on the merch!” The green-haired demon pointed finger guns at the other while winking.  

“Deal!” Both demons shook on it.

“Ay dios mio, is that what you were planning all this time?!” A tiny, muffled voice squeaked all of a sudden that almost made the two demons jump. Hearing the source near him, Beetlejuice blinked and glanced down at one of his shirt pockets. He reached to open it when a small head poked out of the pocket. A blueish-green head with long red hair that Beetlejuice recognized from anywhere.

"Teresa?! What are you doing here?" He exclaimed as he almost fell backwards in his seat. The woman in question stood up from her spot in the pocket and lifted her arm to point up at him.

"I could ask you the same thing, mi canalla! Here I am, riding and sliding in your pocket instead of taking my well-earned, once-in-a-death time break! Do you know how much paperwork I needed to file to get it approved?!" Teresa scolded while almost ripping strands of her own hair out, then sighed as she pinched her forehead and muttered in Spanish briefly. "I saw you leaving the Netherworld and I got worried, so I followed you and hid in here while you shifted."

At that, the dead-born demon scowled and crossed his arms. "There's nothin' ta worry about. I'm fine on my own!"

Beelzebub glanced from the wheel to see the tiny spirit and gave a slight smirk, reaching to poke her with his pointer finger. "Huh... So your guardian ghost is Miss Argentina?" At that, Teresa snapped her fingers and pushed the large appendage away.

"That's Miss Teresa Maria Argentina to you, buster! No touching!"  She craned her head up to the giant that carried her. “Who does this guy think he is, anyway?”

“This guy is the demon prince of Gluttony.”

Teresa scoffed, then did a double take and stared at Bee again. "Huh. Not what I expected for the king of all pigs."

"La adulación la llevará a todas partes, Señorita. And there's more to gluttony than just eating." The demon crooned, focusing back onto the street. “We’re in the age of excess, honey, and you’re a part of it whether you like it or not.”

“Oh no, I’m not going to be in your little scheme of yours! Which, by the way, will backfire!” Miss Argentina pointed out before crossing her arms in disapproval.

“You can come to the land of the living with us?” Beetlejuice offered with a grin. Before Teresa could reply, both she and the dead-born jolted forward when Beelzebub suddenly on the brakes. The three looked out the window to see an entire row of demons barricading the street. Some demons had motorcycles and their own cars while others stood with their hulking bodies alone. All of them came in different shapes and sizes. A particular demon who looked more like a chubby dragon in form stepped forward from the crow of angry demons.

“Beetlejuice, we got ya surrounded! Come outta the glutton's car. We just need ta talk!” The dragon demon bellowed with a brash voice.

Beetlejuice let out a laugh, his hair turning a bit yellow at the tips as he opened his window and waved. "Heeeeeey, Rosco! How's the femur?" A growl and glare was his only reply.

"Go on ahead! I'll see if I could blow these guys off and contact Mintaka to back us up! I'll catch up with you two when I can." Beelzebub ordered. Without waiting for an answer, he revved up his engine and made a sharp 180 turn. Magma spewed from between the wheels and created a large wave of molten rock, causing the line of demons to scramble away from it.

“Now!” Beelzebub shouted as Beetlejuice's door opened by itself. The ghost didn't need to be told twice. He flew out of the car and landed on his feet before he ran into a nearby alleyway. A few demons and imps who had avoided the magma followed him.

Teresa clung to the edge of the shirt pocket for dear afterlife as her giant mode of transportation moved quickly. Yes, she was dead, but that didn't mean she was immune to pain. It was also a force of habit.

Beetlejuice cursed at himself. It would've been much easier if he were at the surface and he could just teleport himself away. He didn't have that luxury in Hell. Seeing a wired fence up ahead, he had a plan. He pulled at his hair three times as if grabbing something, then he seemed to throw something invisible to his pursuers. All of a sudden, three clones of himself appeared in front of the demons, blocking them from their path as he leapt onto the fence and clambered up to the other side.

"Damn that rat!" One imp exclaimed in frustration. Beetlejuice smirked and continued moving. After a while, he came across an open clearing and an entrance to a burning park covered in glowing stalagmites. They were close to the summoning spot. The ghost with the most cheered, jumping into the air and pumping his fist. Nothing could ruin his moment! He took a few steps forward...

... only to get tackled by a large dust cloud consisting of Rosco and Beelzebub clawing and gnawing at each other. Beetlejuice snarled as his nails and fangs sharpened, trying to push both demons off of him while biting and scratching anyone who came too close. Teresa ducked down to the safety of the shirt pocket, questioning her afterlife choices. The ball of fighting seemed to stop when both Beetlejuice and Beelzebub grabbed Rosco by the shoulders and slammed him to the side of a building.

"Ha!" The two demons exclaimed in victory. The impact was so great, it caused the building to break in half and topple over, hitting the building next door. And the one after that. And the one after that. Soon, there was a giant building version of dominoes falling one by one until it stopped at a particular office building where two demons were having a meeting.

"BETELGEUSE/BEELZEBUB!" Two voices roared suddenly, echoing all over Hell and possibly the Netherworld as well. Both demons in question stood up straight, let go of the dragon demon, and winced in unison.

"Oh crap."

Before either of them knew it, the two demons and the spirit found themselves in Lucifer's domain, tensed and unaware of what would transpire. As Bee got dragged away in chains, Beetlejuice stood in the middle of the hallway and averted his eyes from Juno's sight, his hair and outfit turning a gloomy violet as his wrists shifted from the handcuffs behind him. Teresa stood on the director's shoulder, not saying a word.

"Why doesn't this surprise me one bit?" Juno stated calmly, only to shriek when Beetlejuice opened his mouth to speak. "You damn fool! You couldn't give me just one year of peace without screwing it up!"

"But mom-!"

"BUT NOTHING! I'll deal with you later." Juno raised the palm of her hand, causing Beeltejuice to stumble backwards and freeze. Without delay, she then took out a piece of chalk from her hair and drew a tiny door on the nearby wall. She knocked on the door three times with her pinky and the door opened up to reveal green mist. She then aligned herself so the ghost on her shoulder was in front of the entrance.

"I take it you enjoyed your relaxing break?” Juno asked in a saccharine tone. Not waiting for an answer, she exclaimed. “Now get back to work! We just got a bus load of casino gamblers who are probably going to fight with the football players and do who knows what. And no word of what you saw here to the others, understand?”

"Yes, ma'am." Teresa nodded as she held herself while trying to look as professional as possible. She strutted to the door, but stopped just as she was about to enter. She turned her head to look back at Beetlejuice who tried not to make eye contact with her. With a sympathetic frown, she gave a slight wave and made her exit, the door shutting behind her. Beetlejuice looked to the door and sighed, only to yelp when his handcuffs tugged him forward.

“Come on, Lawrence. Satan’s waiting for you.” Juno ordered, walking ahead past her son. She beckoned her finger and the handcuffs tugged again, forcing Beetlejuice to follow her. They went down the hallway and entered the last room which was filled to the brim with demons and imps like a courtroom. Most of them were either involved with recent events or were nearby. There were conversations between their groups until the Shoggoths entered the room, causing the room to become silent.

Juno took Beetlejuice to the front of the stand where the Cardinal Council sat in tall podiums waiting for him. The Cardinal Council consisted of powerful demons who embodied the seven main cardinal sins known to humans. Belphegor of Sloth was dozing off in his seat. Leviathan of Envy was writing a few notes to themselves. Asmodeus of Lust brushed his pink long locks with a comb and some help with a breeze he summoned. Mammon of Greed fidgeted with his coins like always. Beelzebub of Gluttony managed a subtle wave to the dead-born. Last but not least, Lucifer stood at the tallest podium. Despite popular belief, he had the honor of having both Pride and Wrath in his repertoire. Nothing changed about him except that he had more fur and goat features at the moment. Beetlejuice took his place in front of the council, but felt the force from his mother staying with him. Once everyone was accounted for, Lucifer cleared his throat and drummed his claws on the podium.

“Out of all the dead-borns we have in Hell and all over, you have got to be the most stubborn pain in the ass I ever met.” He started, glaring down at the dead-born.

"Lucy, hey! How ya doin'? Your horns look extra-curly today." Beetlejuice casually greeted with a wink.

"Flattery will get you nowhere with me, Lawrence." The goat demon deadpanned. Beetlejuice felt his handcuffs tugging him back and he glanced to see his mother's disapproving frown. Swallowing the negativity for now, he returned his attention to the one in charge.

"C'mon, Lucifer. Let's talk demon to demon, huh? Sure, I snuck down here to hang out with one of the most powerful demons in Hell and destroyed a few things, but what demon hasn't?" The ghost with the most laughed and shrugged. "Besides, it's not like the first few times I messed up here."

“Oh, where do I begin with that?” Lucifer asked in a sardonic tone before he pulled out a large scroll from behind his back and unraveled it. The paper dropped on the ground and continued to roll onto the ground, stretching out of the room and seeming to continue rolling. Yellow strands of hair started to appear on Beetlejuice’s head.

“Surely, you must be exaggerating!” An imp who stood below the podium exclaimed in disbelief, leaning over to read the long scroll.

“This is Beetlejuice we’re talking about. Am I? Let’s read a few random ones, shall we?” The ruler of Hell took out a pair of eyeglasses and placed them on before skimming to a random spot on the list. “There was the time that he and another dead-born managed to freeze all of Hell for a while because, and I quote, ‘We need to have a snow day’.”

"We really needed one!" Beetlejuice shot back in defense. "I've seen breathers enjoy those all the time and Mint owed me one!"

Lucifer chose not to answer as he continued, "You let all the hellhounds loose and insisted that Cerberus should go on a 'play-date'."

"Hey, what Spot and I have is something special! They and Sandy would get along great eating souls and all."

"They are MY pet!"

"Eh... you say 'pet', I say 'furry and fun three-headed acquaintance'."

"And let's not forget the 'food' incident when you somehow managed to make the Netherworld smell like coconut, Hell smell like guacamole, and nearly consumed a hundred souls assigned to a specific place in Hell!" Nearly every demonic being in the room shuddered at the memory.

At the last offense, Beetlejuice shuddered as he nodded in agreement. "Okay, now that was a mistake I will never do again. The last time I would ever make anything in the Lust district. We'll leave it at that! No offense, Azzy."

"None taken." Asmodeus muttered from his seat, not knowing whether to bleach the memory from his brain or keep it.

"The point is you've been causing trouble both here and the Netherworld for centuries despite your curse and I'm at my limit for the last time!" Lucifer sneered, rolling the scroll of crimes back up and making it disappear.

The demons, imps, and four members of the Cardinal Council talked amongst themselves. No doubt they were talking about Beetlejuice and how annoying he was. Beelzebub raised his hand.

"Hey, Satan. It was my idea in the first place. B-Juice was just going along with it. Can't we just lock him outta Hell for a while and curse me instead?" The demon of Gluttony offered. The demon of Pride and Wrath glared at him.

"Oh look at you, trying to act all noble!" Lucifer's voice went up a pitch as he clasped his hands in mockery before he dropped the act and adjusted his glasses with a frown, earning a glare from Bee. "Don't play cute with me. He'll just somehow come here and you two will cause mayhem again!"

"You took the words right out of my mouth." Juno commented drily. The mutters and clamor resumed until Lucifer smacked the side of the podium with his tail hard, causing the room to be silent.  

"What we need is a more... proper punishment. A curse that'll make sure you get the message through that thick skull of yours." With a wave of his wrist, a hefty folder of papers stamped with Beetlejuice's name on it appeared on the podium. Lucifer then started skimming through the file. This continued for a minute or two until his eyes widened at a particular page. He glanced at the dead-born.

"You're obsessed with humans, right? I believe you call them breathers in the Netherworld. You and Bee have that much in common."

No one said a word. Beelzebub averted his gaze from everyone, sinking into his seat as he wanted to be anywhere but there. Juno blew a smoke ring, keeping her thoughts to herself. Beetlejuice continued to glare at the ruler of Hell from his position. Lucifer placed down the stack of papers and took off his eyeglasses to stare at the other. He was silent for a moment until he gave a slight smirk.

"Since you like breathers so much, I should give you what you want. It is what you deserve, after all." He rubbed his claws against his chest before he pointed one at the dead-born. "Lawrence Betelgeuse Shoggoth, you are still banished to the world of the living and cannot say your true name, but I'm adding a few details so you'll stay put. The first one? I'm sealing you to the one item that'll be your downfall."

Lucifer snapped his fingers and a flame burst up from the ground, forming a specific shape. When Beetlejuice noticed what the shape was, he paled.

"No... Not that. Anything but that!" He exclaimed.

"Oh, yes that. Congratulations, you're going to be... LITERATURE!" The flames died down and a large book with a black cover floated in the air. Upon seeing it, Beetlejuice dropped to his knees and screamed dramatically.

"But I can't spell! You maniac!"

"And that's not all! You will be sealed inside this book for all eternity unless you can bond with a living person. It could be any type of bond as long as it's genuine and strong. I'll add some more rules for you to read at your leisure. Until then, only a breather who can read your book could set you free and we all know the chances of that happening!" Lucifer laughed, causing everyone to join him. He then turned to Juno, raising an eyebrow. "This curse alright with you, Juno?"

"Beetlejuice becoming the very thing he destroys? Now that's something I would like to see." The director of Netherworld Customs almost grinned at that. Her son stared at the ground, the purple on his body and hair getting deeper. Seeing that Juno had no complaints, Lucifer then addressed everyone else.

"All those in favor of turning Betelgeuse into a book and throwing him out, say 'Eye'."

"Eye!" Everyone in the room except Beetlejuice and Beelzebub raised their hands, some of the demons even held up their own eyeballs. Lucifer took a quick scan and grinned.

"It's settled. Majority rules. Time to go. Bye, Bug-Beverage!" With a sadistic glint in his eye, the demon ruler snapped his fingers. The large book floated in the air and opened itself, its pages flipping and glowing until it stopped at the center of the book. Once it stopped, a swirling vortex appeared on both pages, acting as a powerful wind current as chains shot out from the book and connected with the ghost's handcuffs to pull him in. Beetlejuice panicked.

"No, wait! I'll behave, I promise! Not this, anything but this! Satan, the things I do ta get a different beginning from the original source material!" Beetlejuice cursed as he gripped at the ground to hold himself from the wind current and chains pulling at him.. It only increased the suction, causing some demons and imps to brace themselves.

His claws dug deep onto the floor as he was dragged by his chains towards the book. Gritting his fangs, Beetlejuice reached out to Beelzebub and cried out, "Tell my story!" Before the gluttony demon could respond, the ghost with the most was sucked into the book and it slammed itself shut.

Everyone in the room applauded and let out a sigh of relief. With a deadpan expression on his face, Beelzebub got up from his seat.

"Well... that was fun." Bee yawned and rolled his eyes, pointing to the other side of the room. "I'm out!"

"Ah-ah-ah. Not so fast!" Satan crooned and grabbed the orange-haired demon by the shirt collar to stop his escape. "I haven't forgotten about you nor my original plan. Just need to put the finishing touches..."

Without any explanation, Lucifer pulled Beelzebub's arm towards his face and bit at the other's thumb, causing the latter to scream. He then slammed Beelzebub's left hand onto the book. Black blood seeped from the thumb and spread onto the entire book, glowing orange upon contact. When he felt that there was enough, Lucifer took off Bee's hand and waved over the book, causing the glow to fade. With that, the seals were complete.

Having watched everything, Juno stared at the book her son was in, her face expressionless. She then took a drag of her cigarette and glanced away, almost relieved. "Let the living deal with him now."

"Where should we drop 'im, boss?" An imp asked as it hopped next to Lucifer, ready to complete the deed once and for all.

"The one place rarely anyone would find it so easy." The ruler of Hell replied after a bit of thought. "A place no one would ever expect such a powerful book to be!"